November 21, 2009

Glorious Christmas Shopping

Most people have one of two approaches to Christmas shopping.

The first school of thought is to shop all year, tuck the items away and be ready for the holiday a month before the actual season begins. I admire this way of thinking and planning to a point. It's probably the best way to approach the bottom line from the vantage point of the checking acct. I have actually tried to practice this method but then I get too excited about the thing I found for that person and have to give it to them so they can enjoy it now.

The other school of thought is to have an awakening a week before Christmas and shop frantically for people, becoming frustrated with crowds, not finding the perfect gift and using your elbows to edge others behind you as you push through the line.

I find that there is a small minority of shoppers that you can spy if you look closely. They are the ones that enjoy every moment of the season as if it truly were the inside of a snow globe coming to life. They begin shopping the day after Thanksgiving with a very thoughtful list of items that are not particularly expensive but instead matching a feeling inside that conveys to the receiver a deep thought.

The tradition of giving neatly wrapped gifts on the Christmas holiday as a way to bring joy to another person is beautiful. Knowing the desires of another person and making their wishes come true is what the history of this behavior is all about. And yet it seems it has been a little bit lost on a consumer driven society.

The financial section of the Wall Street journal is all too quick to post the daily stats of holiday purchasing being down this year. Of course, in a time of recession and volatility in the market, this is not surprising. At the same time I see this as a gently nudge toward acting a little more deliberately this year. Both toward your loved ones and towards your own attitude.

So, will you be a bit more deliberate? Might you consider soaking your elbows in a half of lemon to soften the dry skin, rather than the alternative?